As supply of new apartment move-ins in Seoul is expected to shrink, prices of sale rights at complexes nearing move-in are jumping. In Eunpyeong District, 70 sale-right transactions took place at a single complex over about the past three months, and in Gwangjin District, a sale right for an 84㎡ exclusive-use unit changed hands at a price about 1 billion won higher than the initial presale price. As subscription competition intensifies, analysis suggests demand to lock in new apartments even by paying a premium is flowing into the sale-right market.
According to real estate big data platform Asil on the 12th, from June 1 to Sept. 10, the top spot for Seoul apartment sale transactions, including sale rights, was Hills State Medialle in Daejo-dong, Eunpyeong District. A total of 70 transactions took place during this period. As the complex has not yet begun move-ins, all were sale-right transactions.
Hills State Medialle is set to begin move-ins next month. After a one-year resale restriction applied following its presale in May last year was lifted in May, sale-right transactions became active. It is a large complex created by redeveloping the Daejo 1 District in Eunpyeong District into 28 buildings with four basement levels to 25 above-ground floors, totaling 2,451 households.
A sale right is the right to move into an apartment before completion. The buyer settles the down payment and interim payments already made by the seller, pays a premium, and assumes the obligation to pay the remaining presale balance.
Prices of Hills State Medialle sale rights are on the rise. A sale right for a 59㎡ exclusive-use unit sold for 1,326.9 million won on the 29th of last month, setting a reported high. The price at the time of general presale in May last year was 1,111.5 million to 1,150.6 million won. A simple comparison shows a price about 180 million to 220 million won higher than the initial presale price. There is also a listing at 1.4 billion won.
An official at a nearby licensed real estate agency said, "Because it is a large, new-build complex and the transaction price for a 59㎡ exclusive-use unit is below 1.5 billion won, some buyers see it as advantageous in terms of the loan limit compared with high-priced dwellings," adding, "As prices rise, more sellers are trying to cash out sale rights and move to better areas, making transactions active."
Sale-right transactions are also continuing at Seoulwon IPark in Wolgye-dong, Nowon District. From June 1 to this day, 22 transactions took place. Since the resale restriction was lifted in December last year, a total of 123 units have been transacted over the nine months to this day.
A sale right for an 84㎡ exclusive-use unit at this complex sold for 1,862.45 million won in July. Compared with the general presale price of 1,281 million to 1,414 million won, it is about 450 million to 580 million won higher. The 120㎡ exclusive-use unit exceeded 2 billion won for the first time in May and set a new record last month when it changed hands at 2,186.52 million won.
Record-high sale-right transactions are also continuing in other areas. A sale right for an 84㎡ exclusive-use unit at Prugio Radius Park in Jangwi-dong, Seongbuk District, which is scheduled for move-in in March next year, sold for 1,647.81 million won on June 26. Compared with the general presale price of 1,184 million to 1,211 million won, it is about 440 million to 460 million won higher.
Gangbyeon Station Central IPark in Gwangjin District, which was presold in May 2024, has seen an even larger price increase. A sale right for an 84㎡ exclusive-use unit, supplied at up to 1,272 million won, changed hands at 1,493.8 million won last year and then at 2.25 billion won in June. The gap between the initial presale price and the recent transaction price amounts to 978 million won.
A decrease in Seoul apartment move-in supply and a higher bar for subscriptions are analyzed to have spurred demand for sale rights. According to Real Estate R114, Seoul apartment move-in supply will shrink from 37,103 households last year to 25,281 households this year. In 2027 it will fall below 20,000 households to 18,682, and in 2028 it is projected to decline to 13,683.
Ko Jun-seok, a professor at Yonsei University Sangnam Institute of Management, said, "The biggest reason new-build sale-right prices are rising is a lack of supply," adding, "As move-in supply falls, the scarcity of new-builds increases, and premiums on sale rights are also rising. The strength in Seoul sale-right prices is likely to continue for the time being."